Out with the Old... by CoreyBlack

Photography • Urban/Cityscape • posted on Dec 31, 2012

Open full image in new tab Zoom on image

Hover over top left image to zoom.
Click anywhere to exit.

Members remain the original copyright holder in all their materials here at Renderosity. Use of any of their material inconsistent with the terms and conditions set forth is prohibited and is considered an infringement of the copyrights of the respective holders unless specially stated otherwise.

Description

Goodbye 2012! Hello 2013! OUT WITH THE OLD: Seeing as how this is the final day of the year, I thought I'd finish up with a photo of the final days of an old building. Here we see the demolition of the infamous Ravenswood Hospital. Infamous because of a 1998 incident where a 15 year old shooting victim died in the driveway outside the emergency room because none of the staff would come out to treat him. The incident caused such a huge international outcry that it essentially put the hospital out of business. The facility closed in 2002, and in the last decade devolved into a boarded up, derelict, eyesore. A blight on the otherwise upscale Ravenswood/ Lincoln Square neighborhood. When demolition began last October, many in the area breathed a sigh of relief. IN WITH THE NEW: The property was recently purchased by Lycee Foundation de Chicago, the Chicago branch of a French educational consortium with over 500 schools to it's credit. After the rubble of the former hospital is cleared away, the foundation plans to build a school with a large public park attached, and have it open by 2015. This another of those lucky shots I get every so often when I just happen to engage the camera at exactly the right instant. Of course if you stand in roughly the same spot for 20 minutes and make over 100 pictures, you're bound to get one of them right. I'm still not happy with the deeply overcast lighting, but you can't have everything. Photographed a little too close to the safety fence (I got a piece of grit in my eye that took forever to work its way out) on December 17, 2012. Sometimes I wonder about this photography hobby of mine... HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!!

Comments (10)

)

Chipka

9:19PM | Mon, 31 December 2012

There are parts of 2012 that this could happen to and I'd just sit back, eating popcorn...watching, and occasionally giggling; there were good parts of 2012 also...and more apocalypses than you could shake a stick at! I never saw the world end so many times in one year! Amazing! This is a great shot too. This building never looked so good! Sometimes a building just doesn't come into its own unless it's going through death throes, and I can imagine all of the Chicago area UrbExers really sad to see this place go...it was such a safety hazard (even BEFORE) it closed, and it would seem that people were in the habit of dying there after closure too!!! I love the plume of dust, the bits of cement hanging on rebar...like architectural dingleberries, stuck in butt-lining fur (too strong an image?) And the crane just looming there is great. Happy new year and I hope that 2013 has more high points and fewer apocalypses than 2012. This is a great shot.

)

bmac62

9:42PM | Mon, 31 December 2012

Timing is everything Corey! Great job. I'd like to take a swing at something with that big steel ball. Happy New Year to you...:)

)

Osper

9:51PM | Mon, 31 December 2012

Nice shot! You were in the right place at the right time.

)

auntietk

11:48PM | Mon, 31 December 2012

Outstanding timing! I'm quite a fan of the "stand there and take a hundred pictures and you'll get at least one good one" school of photography, especially when it comes to things that move around. That's how I've gotten some passable airplane shots ... I just keep clicking until I feel like one more might make me sick. The technique generally produces good results. Happy New Year, my dear! I hope 2013 brings you improved health, much joy, and all the good stuff you can handle!

)

beachzz

11:56PM | Mon, 31 December 2012

Damn, I got a piece of that crud in MY eye now!!! That's how good this foto is, you really feel that building comin down!!

)

durleybeachbum

1:03AM | Tue, 01 January 2013

Brilliant! Well done that madman! All the best for a healthy 2013 , Corey.

whaleman

2:05AM | Tue, 01 January 2013

Perfect timing! That's what I call 'bringing the house down' on New Year's Eve, LOL! All the best to you in 2013 Corey! (ps - I often do more than 100)

)